This invention relates to foldable bicycles, and in particular to a folding bicycle having a foldable frame and a foldable handlebar assembly for reducing the bicycle to a relatively small, compact package for convenience in transporting and storing the bicycle when it is not in use. The invention is particularly suitable for, but not limited to, safety bikes, or so-called "mountain bikes", that have relatively large wheels and tires and relatively sturdy, generally triangular frames, for use not only on paved roadways but also on rougher surfaces such as trails.
Folding bicycles have been known and used for many years, in various configurations and sizes and with a variety of different approaches to the folding of the bicycle. One very popular folding bicycle is that shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,433,852, designed to use relatively small wheels (e.g., sixteen inches in diameter) on a low-profile frame carrying handlebar and seat assemblies that fold and extend upwardly to dispose the handlebar and the seat at the desired height for any user, ranging from a child to a full-size adult. The reduced size of the wheels and low-profile frame of this patented bicycle permit the folding of the bicycle into a very compact package. The handlebar assembly includes an elongated post that is hinged at its lower end on an inclined axis to turn the handlebar into a front-to-rear attitude as it is folded down, and the frame is hinged at its longitudinal midpoint to fold the front and rear wheels into side-by-side relation.
Larger bicycles also have been designed for folding, but folding full-size bicycles have not met with great popularity, perhaps because of the complexity and bulk of the folding features and in part because of the unsightliness or obtrusiveness of those features. Instead, it remains popular among serious cyclists to "break down" the bicycle to some extent by removing at least the front wheel, and to transport or store the bicycle in such a broken-down condition. It will be apparent that mere removal of the front wheel will not be sufficient to reduce a full-size bicycle to an easily stored or transported package.
The objective of the present invention is to provide improved foldable features that can be applied to bicycles of all kinds and that are particularly well-suited for use in mountain bikes that have substantially straight handlebars.